Process of liberating and separating fibers.



INITED STATES Patented April 4, 1905.

PATE T FFICE.

PROCESS OF'LIBERATING AND SEPARATING FIBEFRS;

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 786,721, dated April4:, 1905. Application filed July 27, 1900. Renewed September 22, 1904.Serial No. 225,466.

10 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY SPENCER BLACK- MORE, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at 206 South Ninth avenue, in the city of Mount Vernon,county of Westchester, and State of New York, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Processes of Liberating and SeparatingFibers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the artto which it appertains to make and use the same.

The object of my invention is to liberate and separate fibers from theirnaturally uniting or binding constituents with which they are found innaturesuch as cutose, vasculose, tc.in such a manner that the fibers arenot injured and that the gummy or binding constituents are removed bysimple'and economical means. 1

My invention relates particularly to the separation of ramie fiber, butis not limited therethe individual fibers from each other by theincrease in bulk of chemicals introduced between the fibers induced bydecomposition or combination.

In carrying out my process I prefer to proceed as follows: I take thestalk, such as ramie, from which it is desired to separate the fiber andplace the same in a receptacle containing a ten-per-cent. solution ofalkali aluminate, such as sodium aluminate, preferably in a heatedstate, (about 200 Fahrenheit.)

The receptacle is then closed, the stalks allowed to digest for about anhour, when the pressure is preferably reduced by exhaustion,

which withdraws from the stalks any occluded air within the pores. Iprefer to treat the fibrous material in drums holding about two hundredand fifty gallons of ten-pencent. solution of sodium aluminate andaddthereto from time to time fresh portions of alkali alu minate tocompensate for that taken up by the decomposition of the bindingconstituents of the fiber, so that the solution may be maintained atabout a uniform density. I then subject the material to an increasedpressure of steam of about sixty pounds, which further heats thesolutionand drives it into the material,.thus thoroughly saturating it with thealkali aluminate. During the digestion under pressure with the alkalialuminate the binding calcium salts are decomposed, producing alkalioleocutate, steariocutate, pectate, &c., and calcium aluminate. Thealkali salts are afterward dissolved out by thoroughly washing with hotWater. The stalks containing the alkali aluminate arethen removed fromthe chemical bath and exposed to the action of' carbon dioxid underpressure of about three hundred pounds, which decomposes the alkalialuminate, liberating aluminium hydroxid. or hydrated oxid within thepores between the fibers, which, together with the alkali bicarbonateproduced, simultaneously increase in bulk and segregate the fibers fromeach other. The pressure is then reduced and the stalks thoroughlywashed with water, the alkali salts being thereby removed, leaving thefibers practically free from each other, retaining a portion of thealuminium hydroxid, which is finally removed by treatment with dilutecaustic alkalisolution, such as a five-per-cent. solution of causticsoda, which combines with the aluminium hydroxid, regenerating alkalialuminate, which is employed for further operation, leaving the fibersclean, and which after drying and bleaching are in condition formechanical treatment and manufacture into textile articles.

It can be seen by the foregoing description that my process consists inchemically trans forming the binding substances of the. fibers intosoluble compounds without injuring the fiber and parting the individualfiber by the,

between the fibers, such as the decomposition of sodium aluminate by theaction of carbonic acid, producing aikali bicarbonate by absorption ofthe carbon dioxid and the liberation of aluminium oxid, whichimmediately absorbs moisture, prod ncing aluminium hydroxid, bothcompounds of which are considerably increased in bulk by the reaction.

It is obvious that other salts or compounds capable of increasing inbull: by chemical combination or transformation and which chemicalcompounds have the property of transforming the binding substances ofthe fibers into soluble substances without injuring the fiber per se maybe employed without departing from the spirit oi? my invention, whichconsists, substantially, in liberation and-separation of fibers fromtheir binding constituents by the action of chemical compounds, theincrease in bulk whereof'when introduced into the pores between thefiberslifts and parts the same without injury to the fiber.

Having now described my invention, what 1 claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. The process of liberating and separating fibers which consists insaturating the combined fibers witn a chemical compound capable oftransforming the binding constituents into soluble compounds andseparating the fibers from each other by increasing the hull; ofchemicals in the pores between the fibers by chemical action.

2. The process of liberating and separating fibers, which consists insaturating the material containing combined fibers with a compoundcapable of decomposing the binding substances of the fibers andincreasing in bulk when exposed to reagents and ex 'iosing the materialso saturated to the action of reagents producing products of increasedbulk whereby the fibers are separated from each other by formation andexpansion of chemical salts.

3. The process of liberating and separating fibers which consists insaturating the material containing combined fibers with a solution ofchemicals capable of decomposing the binding substances by digestingtherein, removing the saturated material from the chemical bath andexposing it to the action of a gaseous compound capable of uniting withthe chemical retained therein, producing a product of increased bulk andwashing and removing the compounds thus formed therefrom, substantiallyas described.

4. The process of liberating and separating fibers which consists insaturating the combined fibers with an alkali aluminate, and exposing tothe action of water and a gaseous reagent.

5. The process ol liberating and separating fibers which consists insaturating the combined fibers with sodium uluminate, and exposing tothe action of carbon dioxid and water.

6. In the process of liberatineaml separating fiber, the step ol.separating them from each other, which consists in increasing the bull;of chemicals within the pores between the fibers by the absorption,combination, or reaction with suliistances supplied thereto aftersaturation therewith, substantially as described.

7. The process of liberating and separating fibers which consists indccom posing the binding constituents of the fibers by chemical actionand separating the fibers from each other by producing solid compoundsof increased bulk within the pores between the fibers by transformationol chemical content.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY Slllh'bl'llt lilnitllillldllll.

VY'itnesses: I

humps G. S'roNu, H. N. JnNKINs.

